The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1887-10-13
THE CONVICTS AND THE PUB
x Lie ROADS,

~ NtS"o VI CAo ooAA o.
policy Of the law under which crimi-
nails may be and are now being worked
on the public roads meet with my en-
tire approval. twenty years ago n
of the most levekheaded as we'll as
thoroughly honest citizens of this
county representing the county in the
Legislature, q referNto John A Rose
bro) endeavored with might and main
to get up a sentiment in the Legisla-
ture that would justify the introduce
ton of a bill to do just what our last
Legislature did. Public sentiment
was then so much against it among
the legislators of that day that it would
have been a waste of time to introduce
a bill and it was given up. The time
has come when we have the law, and
as [ agreed with Mr.. Rosebro then, [
am an advocate of the law to-day. |
have no doubt that if steadily execu-
ted it will prove much more efficient
in deterring from crime than either
confinement in the penitentiary or n
our county jail. This last is really a
premium paid by the county for the
commission of crime. A majority Of
the class from which these convicts
come would prefer living in Jail and
being fed, with a deck of cards for
amusement, to living at large and COM
PEELED to work for a living, AS proof
of this fact the usual programme vas
to serve out the sentence, lie quietly
and happily in jails fo1 80 days and
swear out as insolvents. Working on
the public roads has already demon
strated that they prefer and in many
cases find lei to pay up the cost at
the expiration of their term Of sentence
to continuing for 80 days longer to
work; and thus the county is saved the
paying Of thess bills of cost and the 80
days board preliminary to their tax
ing the insolvent oath. The saving
along this line will 60 largely to reduce
the expenses Of overseer and guard Tor
guards. as there has thus far been
more or less of the ~convicts) and the
few tools and extra r~ations needful to
enable them to work. True, if Iredell
county alone took advantage Of the
law she would labor under the disad-
vantage that she is feeding and cloth
ing her own convicts and helping to
feed and clothe those of other counties
in the p~enitentiary. This she is doing
now, but it is not likely to be SO long
if she goes steadily on in the course
she has started. M~ecklenburg was the
first to adopt this plan, [ believe, I'M
der a special law. Iredell was the
first, SO far as | am informed, under
the general law, and I already see it
stated that Rowan and Davidson have
followed suit, and [ have not a shadow
Of a doubt that in less than five years,
unless there is some very bad manage
ment somewhere, that every county in
the State will be working her own con
victs on her own pablo roads and then
there will be none of this paying pen
itentiary expenses by one county for
convicts from others. And further, it
will necessarily improve pubic
roads. For example: The first work
done in Iredell was on the Taylorsville
road to Sta~tesville. Just about one
month of from five to nine hands in
the hot, dry weather has put this road
in better condition than it has been
since the wal for the three miles that
the convicts worked, and if the super
visors Of roads see that the overseers
do their duty as they Imean the over
seers) are generally disposed to do, it
will remain in better condition than it
has been for many years, and so more
or less of other roads that have been
worked by the convict labor.
[ grant there is probably at present
something of the element of working
the roads by taxation. Iredell county
is probably paying just now and will
probably for a time pay out mor for
overseers and guard wages, tools, jail
board, (extra), clothing, &C., than she
is saving by the paying in of costs and
the saving of 80 days ordinary jail
board to enable them to swear out.
Still I think she can afford to pay this
very small tax to try thoroughly
whether the system will not cut down
her expenses by deterring from the
breach of law. There is another con
sideration Where these convicts have
been worked there has been more or
less private aid trying to better the
condition of the public highways that
are for everybody to travel. This will
likely continue wherever they are
worked and the public gains al THIS